Finally, on the third day of Madrid Fusión the turn of Pino Cuttaia from Licata arrived. He was the only Italian chef called to speak on the stage of Madrid’s important congress (we will try to sum up the content once the event is finished). The Sicilian chef is facilitated by the introduction of communicator Angela Barusi: «Pino works on Italy’s furthest beach, overlooking Malta and Pantelleria. He returned there in 2000, after having spent a few years working in Piedmont. The call was given by an enlightening revelation: ‘I want to be a chef at home’».
In coherence with the name of his
Madia, a treasure chest of yeast and memories, the title of his
ponencia in Palacio de Congresos was “A chef in black and white” «Because food», the chef effectively explains, at ease with his timidity in front of a numerous audience «can lead us far away but only if we remember where we started from».
In his journey, these origins and destines have taken the shape of art and craftsmanship. How can you solve the eternal dispute, whether cuisine is one or the other? «In my case, saying I’m an artist is too much. But perhaps it is too much for any chef because he repeats what cannot be repeated. Which is not a theme for the artist. Artists are unreliable because they create and run away. We’re artisans because we can reproduce something every day, like ironmongers». Something good, however. «And then there are those who are halfway between art and craftsmanship. We call them workforce, they know raw materials, and we can enjoy this».
After philosophically breaking the ice, the first of his two recipes arrived. An emblematic dish of Cuttaia’s (together with his Squid egg, the manifesto of the Identità Golose 2014 congress, on February 9th-11th): it’s the famous Perlina aubergine cannolo made with crispy pasta, ricotta, cherry tomatoes and Ragusano cheese, presented on the stage of Milan two years ago. «When conceiving every idea, I’m always influenced by memories, even in the case», he jokes, «of these silver hairs, since I don’t have any hair left». The spaghettini are wrapped around a slice of aubergine with starch, around the shape of a cannolo. The cylinder will be baked and the result will be a «hidden Pasta alla Norma». Brilliant and contemporary memories.
The theme of
Madrid Fusión, hidden behind the elegant “La inspiración está en la calle” formula, is that of street food. This is why, the second dish in the lecture, another masterpiece of his, draws from Palermo’s traditional octopus, sold in the streets. It’s
Octopus on the rock, a seaside edible landscape that shows the octopus before it is captured. Except the rock is fake, and edible; it is made with Ustica lentils, dehydrated and then fried, reproducing the sand (
rinella) left on the tentacles of the dying octopus. Parsley is made into a gelatine, in order to recreate the seaweeds together with the oil. The parsley is «also a symbol of the streets of some time ago, when kids sold bunches of them on top of wooden boxes, at the corner of the street». The octopus, cooked on a skewer, is smashed on top and looks alive and ready to escape... in between the teeth of the Spanish audience, who rush around to take photos of the dish from below the stage.
«Memory», Cuttaia concludes, «is the energy from which to start from, leading us to perfection. It is remembering the way in which my mother used to chop the parsley. The most basic thing. It is the premise for any craftsmanship that is possible». Roaring applauses followed. And then it was the turn of Gaston Acurio, whom we will also be able to listen to in via Gattamelata.
